An Italian judge has issued arrest warrants for five police officers amid allegations of xenophobic abuse and torture targeted at detainees from minority backgrounds.
These officers, operating from a police station in Verona, are accused of transforming the facility into a hub for degrading practices and torture against detainees, including individuals of Moroccan, Tunisian, and sub-Saharan African descent.
The time period spanning from August to November 2022 bore witness to a series of abhorrent events, with detainees being subjected to dehumanizing treatment, physical abuse, relentless harassment, and even threats of sexual assault.
In his ruling, the judge decried the officers’ actions as “violent and sadistic behaviors”, a gross deviation from what is expected of law enforcement officers. He emphasized that these acts reflect not just an extreme abuse of power, but also a deeply rooted xenophobia.
The Moroccan Times.
